Designing multicolor luminescence in Tb3+/Eu3+-codoped KGd2F7 nanoparticles through energy transfer engineering for warm white light-emitting diode

Abstract

By a facile precipitation method at room temperature, series of Tb3+-doped and Tb3+/Eu3+-codoped KGd2F7 nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized. Upon 377 nm excitation, Tb3+-doped KGd2F7 NPs possess intense green emissions and their strongest intensities are obtained when Tb3+ ion is 30 mol%, where the corresponding concentration quenching mechanism is electric dipole-quadrupole interaction. As for Tb3+/Eu3+-codoped KGd2F7 NPs, dazzling multi-color emissions are achieved, excited by 377 nm, triggered by the energy transfer (ET) from Tb3+ to Eu3+. Specially, the emitting color is changed from green to yellow and finally to red as Eu3+ content increases. Through systematical discussion based on the emission spectra and decay time, the ET mechanism is decided by dipole-dipole interaction. Moreover, Tb3+/Eu3+-codoped KGd2F7 NPs do not only have high thermal stability but also exhibit admirable quantum efficiency of 65.7% excited by 377 nm. Furthermore, through utilizing the resultant NPs as yellow-emitting components, a warm white light-emitting diode with high color rendering index (85.5) and low correlated color temperature (4323 K) is fabricated, which are insensitive to injection current. Our findings may provide promising luminescence materials with multicolor emissions to meet the requirement of phosphor-converted solid-state lighting.